Seoul Gazette - Nations at odds over fossil fuels as COP30 draws to a close

At stake is nothing less than proving that international cooperation can still function in a fractured world -- and delivering a text that nudges the planet back toward the critical 1.5C long-term warming target, despite the absence of President Donald Trump's United States.

But after two weeks of negotiations in the Amazonian city of Belem, the draft text unveiled by Brazil on Friday had no mention of "fossil fuels" or the word "roadmap" that President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva had himself suggested weeks ago.

"This is in no way close to the ambition we need on mitigation. We are disappointed with the text currently on the table," European Union climate commissioner Wopke Hoekstra said in a statement to AFP.

France's ecological transition minister, Monique Barbut, decried in a text message to AFP "an incomprehensible omission at a time of climate emergency".

Around 30 countries had written to the Brazilian presidency on Thursday warning they could not accept a final deal at COP30 that did not include a plan for moving away from fossil fuels.

The letter, drafted by Colombia, stated: "We cannot support an outcome that does not include a roadmap for implementing a just, orderly, and equitable transition away from fossil fuels."

China, India, Saudi Arabia, Nigeria and Russia have rejected the fossil fuel roadmap, according to a negotiator who wished to remain anonymous.

Consensus is needed among the nearly 200 nations at the UN climate talks to land an agreement.

NGOs also rejected the drat deal, with Greenpeace urging nations to send it back to the Brazilian chair for revisions.

"Hopes were raised by initial proposals for roadmaps both to end deforestation and fossil fuels," said Greenpeace climate politics expert Tracy Carty.

"But these roadmaps have disappeared and we're again lost without a map to 1.5C and fumbling our way in the dark while time is running out."

- Money fight -

Divisions remain not just over fossil fuels but trade measures and finance for poorer nations to adapt to climate change and move to a low-carbon future.

"The lack of finance from richer nations... remains an ongoing obstacle in these final days to securing bold and fair outcomes," Rachel Cleetus, senior policy director at the Union of Concerned Scientists, told AFP.

The EU is also fighting resistance led by China and India to its "carbon tax" on imports such as steel, aluminum, cement and fertilizers -- measures Britain and Canada are also preparing to adopt.

Negotiations toward a final outcome were delayed on Thursday when a fire torched a hole through the fabric ceiling of the COP30 venue, forcing a panicked evacuation.

Nineteen people were treated for smoke inhalation and two for anxiety attacks, officials said. The venue reopened later on Thursday night.

The conference is supposed to end on Friday but UN climate summits often run into overtime.

- Protests -

Lula has branded COP30 the "COP of truth," investing significant political capital in its success and defending his choice to hold it in Belem, despite concerns over inadequate infrastructure that have plagued the hot, humid city on the edge of the world's largest rainforest.

The fire was the third major incident since the summit began at the COP30 compound.

Last week, Indigenous protesters stormed the venue and blockaded the entrance days later in a peaceful demonstration.

The cause of the blaze was being investigated but may have been the result of a short circuit or other electrical malfunction, said Brazilian Tourism Minister Celso Sabino.

V.Pyo--SG